The Fault In Our Stars

I had heard a lot of buzz about John Green's novel The Fault In Our Stars so I was anxious to check it out. I wasn't even sure what the novel was about, but for a while it seemed like everywhere I turned I was reading something about its soaring popularity.

I learned before cracking it open that the novel was about Hazel, a sixteen year old girl with cancer, who meets Augustus, a boy in a support group for teenage cancer victims, and he turns her life upside down. It's a good story which is why the book has gained so much success. However, I did have a couple of problems with the book that made it hard for me to love it. First, the novel is written in first person from Hazel's perspective and though Green seems to be a capable writer, I didn't think he pulled off the teenage girl voice too well. As the novel went on it got better (or I became more able to ignore it) but it was hard to buy into the premise that it was a teenage girl telling the story. I also found the dialogue problematic at times because it could often be way over the top witty. There was one line in particular that I'd argue would never come out of anyone's mouth at dinner, much less a sixteen year old girl's. Good dialogue is supposed to be believable and in this novel it often wasn't. Then there was how as a reader it was difficult not to come to feel pity for the teen cancer victims despite how much they talked about not wanting people to feel that way. Is it a worthwhile read? Yeah, I'd say it is. But it's also chock-full of problems.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

The first time I read a Harry Potter book it was to Isaac, my oldest, when the final book came out. There was this huge buzz over the series' final installment so I was curious and Isaac wanted to read it, so it worked out for both of us. A couple years ago Isaac, Alan, and I had a reading challenge where we all would each read the books and 'raced' to see who could finish first. Now I have Adam at that age and he's been dying to read the series so I finally granted him his wish. 

I love the series as a whole, but I've never gotten too excited about Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. It's good; they're all good, but it's my least favorite in the series. I understand the burden of this novel: it has to set the stage for not only the rest of the series but must introduce the reader to this wizard world. And Rowling does that pretty successfully. I've just never been able to get too excited about it. (Generally speaking, I think the books get better the further into the series.) But bottom line, the books are fun--all of them--whether read alone or aloud... though they are particularly fun to read to a wide eyed child who is spellbound by the magic of it all.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer

I was so ecstatic to learn that the sequel to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was out that I set aside a great book I was reading in order to devour it. As I began reading I realized how much of the first book I had forgotten, but still I pressed on. I wasn't crazy about the flashbacks to her grandmother in India with whom she appeared to have an inexplicable link, but the writing wasn't bad and the flashbacks were sparse. I found myself a tad annoyed with Mara in this book (it was how insistent she was that she was sane when the craziest things were happening) and yet I continued. And the further along I got in the book, the more difficult it was to put down. The novel took a turn that I certainly didn't see coming and it was gripping, though I had a hard time buying it, which soured my feelings on this sequel. I still want to read the next book, likely as soon as I can get my hands on it, as I like the characters and I enjoy Hodkin's writing, and know she can deliver a book that gets you to keep turning pages. Though I've lowered my expectations after this book, I'm hoping the next installment will not disappoint.

Abandoned: The Book Thief

I heard so much hype about Markus Zusak's The Book Thief that I wanted to check it out. And when I found it at the library I saw the book was awarded many awards and received much praise--the anticipation was mounting. I began reading it aloud to Isaac and a couple chapters in he confessed he wasn't into it. I wasn't either, but kept looking at the paragraph-long list of honors and awards and was determined to continue. I got to page 114 before calling it quits. I hadn't truly connected with any characters and I found the prose style unskilled, even annoying. I'm sure the novel tells a good story, but I could not press through the book because of the way it was told. I'd love to see a film adaptation someday, but am not interested in continuing the book.

Crank

In my search for looking for good YA novels for Alan's classroom next year, I found a list of books that are popular with seventh and eighth graders. One of the titles was Ellen Hopkins' Crank. I glanced at what it was about--a teen girl on crystal meth. I wasn't sure if the novel would be something that would work for his classroom, but I know that Alan is interested in hearing stories about struggles with addiction, so I placed the book on hold. When it came in, I saw that the book was written entirely in a series of poems, which made me more interested in reading the book myself (though it seemed less appealing to Alan).

It was a quick read and an interesting format. I've seen other novels written with poetry rather than prose and I do enjoy the reading experience, though it can also leave something to be desired--particularly in terms of character development. Some of the things that happen in this book can seem hard to believe simply because you don't know the characters well enough to know if they would actually do these things. Overall I did enjoy the book and found it interesting that it is the first in a trilogy. I plan on eventually picking up the sequel, but am not rushing out to read it.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Alan will be teaching middle school in the fall and has been reading YA and children's novels to familiarize himself with what books are out there to recommend to his future students. I went to the library for him and came home with a stack of a dozen that I had loved, including Sherman Alexie's novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Alan and I both had read it a couple years ago and loved it. We had agreed Isaac was too young to read it because of the content, but time made these instances in the novel fuzzy in my mind. I told Alan I'd reread it to see if it'd make the cut.

. This novel is such a great read. It's the story of Junior, an Indian boy who lives the reservation to go to school in an all-white school. Junior is the classic underdog character, but tells his tale with wit. The book is both very funny and very sad, bringing out a range of feelings, which I love in a novel. Call me strange, but I like a little melancholy sprinkled into a humorous book. I also love the way it delves into the complex race relations between whites and Indians. I walked away from the book the first time feeling like I truly learned how someone out there feels and that is a testament to the power of rich, well-written characters. It is no wonder that this novel won the National Book Award.

Starters

If I hear a lot about a book, I want to check it out. There was a lot of buzz around Lissa Price's new YA novel Starters, which is described as a Hunger Games-like story. I was intrigued, but when I searched for it at the library found it was only available as a Playaway. I put it on hold, unsure I'd actually listen to it, but then ideal biking weather approached and as I started biking further and further, I was wishing I had something to listen to while riding. (I don't have an iPod or one of those fancy phones with music downloads.) Ah, but I did have a Playaway. And so I listened to Starters as I pedaled around.

Like The Hunger Games, Starters is set in the future after a war. An epidemic swept the nation and those vaccinated were the children ("starters") and the elderly ("enders"). Children without grandparents were sent to an institution, but Callie and her younger brother live on the streets to avoid the desolation that awaits orphans. Out of desperation, Callie decides to go to Prime Destinations, where teens can rent their bodies to seniors. But things get complicated, messy, and then dangerous. That's all I'll say in the interest of not giving too much away. It was an enjoyable book--gripping and interesting. I can see why there is so much comparison to The Hunger Games and I would agree fans of the book by Suzanne Collins would enjoy Lissa Price's new novel.

The Queen of Water

I'm starting a new label today for recommended books since I have one I positively loved, The Queen of Water by Laura Resau and María Virginia Farinango. It is a novel based on a true story, one of those amazing tales that you almost can't believe really happened. It is both heartbreaking and heartwarming and brought me to tears.

 It takes place in Ecuador, a country and culture which I am fascinated by, and the reason I picked the book up in the first place. I didn't even look to see what it was about, I just opened it up and started reading... It is the story of Virginia, an indigenous girl who is taken from her village to serve a mestizo couple. She doesn't only leave behind her family, but her language and culture. Virginia is treated horribly, but is so spirited and determined. My heart went out for her and what she was going through, but this spunky character was also someone I cared deeply about and wanted to see triumph. It is a story about being caught between two cultures and a journey to self-discovery.

Laura Resau, author and cultural anthropologist, met María Virginia Farinango and the two wrote the book together, using Farinango's story, but fictionalizing it. (The two can be seen pictured, right.) The end result is nothing short of amazing. The Queen of Water is an absolutely beautiful book that I highly recommend.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

For anyone who liked Twilight, have I got the book for you--Michelle Hodkin's The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. There are absolutely no vampires, so those who steered clear of Twilight for that reason, may still like this book. I bring up Stephenie Meyer's bestselling book though because it also has a heart thumping romance in the center of a plot chock full of danger. But the similarities end there. (And I have to say, Hodkins is a better writer than Meyer.) 

So to give you the story, in as little detail as possible since there is power in the mystery of the story and the way it unfolds...
Mara wakes up in a hospital room to learn her best friend, her boyfriend, and his sister are all dead, but she doesn't remember what happened. I hate to give too much away because one of the book's virtues is its mystery and the way it unfolds. It's part psychological thriller, part paranormal drama, part romance... and it's really, really good.

If you're intrigued, you can check out the trailer. (Not for the movie; publishing companies are putting out trailers for books now. Interesting, huh?)

Peak

Isaac and I finally finished another book together-- one of the Rebecca Caudill nominees, Peak by Roland Smith. It's the story of a kid named Peak who loves to climb. His father is a famous mountain climber who has a business leading climbing tours up Mount Everest, his mother is a former climber herself who gave it up when Peak was young and married a lawyer. Peak lives in New York City with his mom, step dad, and twin sisters where he likes to scale (and tag) sky scrappers. When he is caught an arrangement is made for him to leave the country, meaning with his father. He soon learns his father is trying to get him up Mount Everest because if Peak did so, he'd be the youngest person to summit it (and dad's business would boom). On the mountain Peak is able to see his parents' varying degrees of loyalty to him and he is faced with a major, life-alterring decision. It was a great story, action-packed enough for Isaac, with themes and characters engaging enough to hold my interest.

Isaac ended up voting for this book when it was time to vote for which Rebecca Caudill book deserved the award. We hadn't finished reading it yet, but he said he was confident it really was the best. I said, "Really? Better than The Rock and the River?" And he slapped his forehead, saying how he forgot about that... moments later adding Where the Mountain Meets the Moon was another worthy contender. When we got to the end last night, Isaac said no, he was right. This was by far the best book on the nominee list this year. He was standing by the vote he cast weeks ago.

The Future of Us

I heard about The Future of Us on NPR about a month ago. I didn't catch the whole story, but heard enough to pique my interest. And when it was over, they said who the authors were—Carolyn Mackler and Jay Asher. Asher wrote a book called Thirteen Reasons Why, which was about a girl who committed suicide and left behind cassette tapes addressed to the people that brought her to that point of hopelessness. It was a real twisted idea, but a powerful story about how our actions have consequences and how much we can hurt a person.

The Future of Us is another story about the consequences of our actions, but in a much different light. Two characters, Josh and Emma, find their Facebook pages fifteen years into the future. (The story takes place in 1996 and they are looking ahead to when they are 31 years old.) As someone who is not on Facebook, the whole phenomenon fascinates me. There is a certain allure to social networking, but I haven't succumbed to its temptation; to be perfectly honest, mostly because I'm not the best at balance. I was on Friendster way back when and it was so addictive. It is easier to avoid it altogether than risk getting sucked in and obsessing over things I or my friends have posted. This book once again made me feel like my decision to stay away from the site is a good one. Emma gets pretty obsessed with the snippets of her future life she gets through these posts. Neurotic, some might say and yet I could relate to poor Emma.

The Future of Us is a quick, interesting read about how the choices we make affects our life stories. As someone who always thinks “what if I would have done...” or “I should've did this instead of that...” it was a nice reminder that my life would not have turned out this way had I done this instead of that. And sometimes we need that reminder.

Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler